The confused look showed on Shaquille O’Neal’s face as he heard the news that further validated his place in Lakers lore.
After laughing on set with Jimmy Kimmel on Jan. 28, 2016, ABC’s late-night television host showed O’Neal a rendition of a 1,200-pound, nine-foot statue the Lakers planned to unveil of the former superstar outside of Staples Center.
O’Neal hardly viewed the moment as a slam dunk, even if the statue showed him throwing one down.
“I thought it was a prank,” O’Neal recalled.
Minutes later, Lakers president Jeanie Buss called O’Neal to insist it wasn’t.